Suh lives up to reputation with kick on Schaub

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DETROIT — To say Ndamukong Suh is regarded as one of the NFL’s dirtiest players is like calling the mob a violent organization.

On the first play of the Texans’ second possession Thursday, Matt Schaub dropped back to pass. Trying to create pressure, Suh broke through the offensive line but was pulled down by right tackle Derek Newton.

As Suh hit the ground, his feet hung in the air near Schaub’s midsection, and it appeared as if he made a concerted effort to kick the veteran quarterback in the groin.

Though Suh was unavailable for comment after the Texans’ 34-31 overtime victory, Schaub made it clear he thought it was a dirty play. But he refused to engage in a war of words.

“I have no comment about that play or that player,” Schaub said.

When Suh went to the ground, he rolled and stuck out his left foot — right into Schaub’s groin.

Coach Gary Kubiak could be seen chewing out an official.

“I asked them to watch for that,” Kubiak said.

Cheap shots and controversy are nothing new to Suh. Since entering the league in 2010, he has been flagged for his fair share of personal fouls, and he has been fined on multiple occasions for unsportsmanlike conduct.

For Suh — voted as the league’s dirtiest player for the second consecutive season, according to a recent players poll in the Sporting News — there has been no shortage of cheap hits.

And so when the 6-4, 307-pound lineman’s left foot connected squarely with Schaub’s groin, it was only natural that the play was suspected to be of malicious intent.

Though Suh played well at times, pressuring Schaub out of the pocket on various occasions, his questionable actions overshadowed his general performance, coming just one year after perhaps his most infamous play.

During last year’s Thanksgiving matchup against Green Bay, Suh slammed the head of offensive lineman Evan Dietrich-Smith into the turf and stomped his arm. Suh was ejected and subsequently served a two-game suspension.

But unlike last year, his intent against Schaub was not visibly clear.

“I didn’t see it,” Lions coach Jim Schwartz said. “I would be very surprised if it was anything other than the natural course of the game.”